Atletico Madrid beat Bayern 1-0. Image Source: File Pic[/caption]Internet Desk: Atletico Madrid put on another vintage European display to down Bayern Munich 1-0 at the Vicente Calderon on Wednesday night and have one foot in the Champions League final. It could have been a two goal lead for Atleti if Torres would not have missed a golden opportunity.
With Bayern boss Pep Guardiola and his players talking up the fact that they would go for an away goal, Diego Simeone sprung a surprise by sending his side -- renowned for their defensive capabilities -- out with the idea of attacking early on.
Atleti dominated the early stages and their adventure was rewarded after 11 minutes when Saul Niguez scored a goal worthy of winning any semi-final by dancing through the heart of the Bayern side before firing in an unstoppable opener to blow the proverbial roof off the Calderon.
The onus was then on Bayern to break Los Colchoneros down and try as they might they just could not do it. Bayern went close, forcing Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak into action, but Atletico came even closer to a second when Fernando Torres hit the inside of the post on a counter. In the end, Atletico held strong to record a famous victory and condemn Guardiola's men to a third semi-final defeat in Spain in three years.
Simeone's men will now go to Munich with the advantage and Bayern will need to breach Europe's meanest defence if they want to get to Milan. The way it is set up, Simeone is on the verge of taking his charges to a second Champions League final in three years. A remarkable achievement.
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